J. Crew

Before I discovered Bonobos, I used to actually buy clothes in retail stores. I guess you could say my style was preppy (and probably still is) considering the fact that I haven’t owned a pair of jeans since 7th grade. Back when I was still buying clothes in stores, J. Crew was the definition of preppy (barring Brooks Brothers of course), so that’s where I shopped. They seem to be making their image more “hipster” these days, but I’ll guess that’s based more on a change in fashion than a change in their target demographics. Anyway, J. Crew is a New York, NY based company that started with a catalog in 1983 and opened their first store in 1989. They’ve grown into an amazingly recognizable brand, and recently they’ve started growing another brand called Madewell.

Join the Crew

J. Crew’s growth continues as they’ve opened international stores and factory stores while also expanding their e-commerce business. And they keep sending out those catalogs–I’m sure a lot of you get them. And if you do, you’ve probably noticed that the J. Crew style has changed a lot over the last few years (if you don’t get the catalogs, just check their website). Instead of sticking with what they know, they’ve stuck with whom they know. J. Crew actually went public in 2006 but then was taken private again in 2010. I’m not exactly sure what that says about the business, but you can be sure that the current management will continue to be focused on growth. If you want to be part of the new, privately held, less preppy J. Crew, take a look at their Jobs page. It offers three options: Corporate (New York, NY), Distribution/Customer Service (San Antonio, TX / Arden, NC / Lynchburg, VA), and In Store (all over the country). We’re going to focus on first two, so here are the opportunities at J. Crew that might be a good fit for a new or recent grad: